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Work table - Outdoor/Removable

I wanted to gather some opinions on some work table(s). This may seem like a strange setup, but hear me out...

I built a work shed in the backyard (8' X 12' enclosed; some overhang), but I do not like to run the miter saw or cutoff saw inside because of the dust unless the weather is real bad. I want to build some work tables that attach to the side of the shed and can be removed when they are not in use.

The idea is to build two 6' tables that can be stored in a little walkway on the back side of the shed. When "deployed" the table legs would be in the grass of the backyard.

I am not sure what materials to make them out of. I'm torn between square tubing or angle. I think the legs will be two sizes of square tubing, sliding inside one another, and adjustable with pins. They will fold up flat for storage.

What about the top? What material? How wide? I might do some tack welding on them as well, but I know any serious work will result in warping.

I am already "over-budget" on this shed, so think inexpensively, but still sturdy.

Here's a Google Sketch-up of the shed. I just quickly added on a rough sketch of the tables:

I was thinking about a hinged work table. It would be a lot easier than moving tables in and out of your shed whenever you wanted to do something. Especially if you are like me and waaaaaay over do it and your welding table ends up weighing 700 pounds.

Thanks for the quick reply. IF I did make them removable, they would still be outside, just on the backside of the shed. I thought about an aluminum or stainless top, but that doesn't do me much good for doing any kind of welding on. Hmmmmm...

Are you storing them in the shed

I wonder if you are storing your tools in the shed? If so, I would build a shelf on a track system. Then I would have barn door style doors were you could also put some hand tools which would also be accessable outside. Have you ever seen the bed of a popup camper slide out? Should be plety strong enough. This way you dont have to keep setting your tools up. Just open the doors and slide your work area out. It would also open up your work area inside to give you room to move around. I would then extend the overhang to rain and snow doesnt bother you. I do my cutting and grinding outside for the same reason. I plan on doing a setup like this If I ever build a small dedicated workshop. I would have a big overhang. You can also put up a tarp or something to keep the cold wind off of you.

Based on the way you have your door, you would have to do this in the back to give the track system enough leverage to support the weight. Make sure you use wheels in the track so its easy to slide.

I pretty much have the shed finished, so I can't easily modify it much without changing the way I have it setup inside (tool storage, lawn tools, ammo reloading bench, etc.).

Let me run something else by you that I didn't mention before and maybe we can come up with a way to kill two birds with one stone. On the back side of the shed, I have the overhang. I store a motorcycle parked closest to the shed and a riding lawnmower under the outside awning. All of it is on concrete. I have a gambrel set up above where I park the motorcycle that I use to hang and skin deer and hogs with. The plan has always been to install a fold-down stainless steel table along the back wall for processing the meat and also for cleaning fish.

Maybe I could use this for both? I was under the assumption that it would not be a good idea to weld on stainless steel, but if I'm not concerned about the finish and I don't mind cleaning it up with a grinder or flap disk, would it hurt anything?

I had a stainless steel beer keg near where I was welding and showered it with a few sparks from the grinder. I was surprised how the little iron flecks that landed on it rusted so quickly. So I am pretty sure the stainless fold-down table would undergo the same thing if used as a welding/tacking table.

As far as welding splatter flying up against the shed, I could always cut a 4'X8' sheet into two strips (32" wide and another at 16" wide) and use the narrower strip as permanent "back-splash".

I'm just down the road from you with a similar situation. Luckily, my shed has metal siding, so sparks are not ani issue. I consider my house a "starter home," so I just built my table small enough that I can take it with me if / when I move. The plan is to pour a slab underneath this winter, and fully enclose a small workshop off of the side of the shed. Anyway... good luck with it.

In my garage, I've got two work surfaces that fold down from the wall. One is a welding table and one is for wood work.

Two nice things about a folding table attached to the shed would be 1) you can hide clamps and other tools behind the table when it's folded up, and 2) even a lightweight steel table is going to be so heavy you're never going to want to move it. I made my fold-down table out of a steel table that's made of 1/8" sheet on 1/4"x2" angle iron. Even that thin, it's much too heavy for one guy (or even two) to move very easily. Folding it down from the wall is do-able -- but I would need a hoist if I went to 1/4" or more for the surface.